


Parenting

by cantodelcolibri



Series: Nothing More to Say (if you insist) [2]
Category: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
Genre: AGAIN IF you can even call it that, Fluff, KuroFai, M/M, One Shot Collection, Piffle World, Romance, it got kinda out of hand tho towards the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-22
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-08 12:55:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3209933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cantodelcolibri/pseuds/cantodelcolibri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Here, dad." He said, dropping it in the open palm stretching out from under the vehicle.<br/>Syaoran realized what he said and froze. Kurogane either didn't notice, or spared them both an awkward moment by realizing it had been a mistake and not commenting on it. Unluckily for them, Mokona chose to bounce out of the house with Fai in tow just in time to hear his blunder.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Discipline

_Piffle_

* * *

 

Fai-san was behaving strangely; ever since they left Shura and arrived in Piffle, Syaoran noticed their friend had become more....isolated? Not that he went out of his way to avoid the rest of them, more like it took more of an effort to hear his loud voiced cackling over Kurogane-san's indignant squawks.  

It's not that there was a _lack_ of name-calling, per se. But Syaoran had come to notice on more than one occasion that if the nickname in question was not ridiculously over the top, Kurogane-san didn't seem to even notice them.

Well, after being stuck together in Yama for half a year, he assumed Kurogane-san was just relieved to be able to understand what their whimsical friend babbled on about. It seemed as if Kurogane wasn't as quick to anger in this world. Maybe all the fighting in the previous world had mellowed the ninja out.

Syaoran was sitting outside, on top of his own dragonfly as he watched Kurogane tinker around, flat on his back, torso obscured by the body of Wing Egg. He was trying to lessen the sensitivity of the gas pedal, since Sakura was a bit on the clumsy side when it came to driving. Or walking. Or...everything. Kurogane had sworn that if she crashed one more time merely _seconds_ after taking off, he was going to develop some sort of stress disorder, and Syaoran wouldn't be far behind.

Kurogane-san had proven, just like in all the other worlds, that he was a quick learner and good with his hands. So it fell to him to deal with the trickier bits of machinery. General stuff was what Fai was in charge of, even though no matter how many times he said he was way in over his head in these advanced worlds, truth was he's incredibly adaptable. And clever. And he said building things was a bit like cooking: you just have to follow the instructions.

Syaoran, well, Syaoran watched them both and tried to learn as much as he could.

But watching meant he learned more than mechanics.

It's not like he meant to see and hear the things he did, but Syaoran wasn't blind, and he liked to know that everyone in their rag-tag group was okay, not only the princess. So he couldn't be blamed when he realized Fai spent the majority of his time alone in the house while Kurogane stayed outside with Sakura, Mokona, and himself. The only time he ventured out was when he brought them refreshments, food, or he had to help fix something Sakura broke and Kurogane was busy elsewhere.

Syaoran didn't pride himself at being particularly good at gauging emotions or moods, so he was at a bit of a loss as to what was happening whenever it was Kurogane that sought out the other adult, and not vice versa. He would hear them, morning or night, whenever they thought 'the kids' were asleep, in the sitting room or in the kitchen of the ground floor, just talking. No yelling, not bickering, just talking. Syaoran concluded that it was something in the air of Piffle.

"Kid? Hey, kid! Get your head out the clouds and hand me that damn wrench!"

Syaoran snapped out of his thoughts and jumped off of his as of yet unnamed dragonfly and picked up the wrench from the open toolbox lying just out of his mentor's reach.

"Here, dad." He said, dropping it in the open palm stretching out from under the vehicle.

Syaoran realized what he said and froze. Kurogane either didn't notice, or spared them both an awkward moment by realizing it had been a mistake and not commenting on it. Unluckily for them, Mokona chose to bounce out of the house with Fai in tow just in time to hear his blunder.

"Dad? Who is dad?! Is Kurogane dad? Is Syaoran playing house without Mokona!? Mokona wants to play! Mokona wants to be the cute baby!"

"N-n-no! I misspoke! It was a mistake! Kurogane-san just wanted the wrench and I-"

"Aw, Syaoran-kun, you don't have to be embarrassed!" Fai said, smiling easily and carrying a platter of sandwiches and drinks in both hands. He set both down on the patio table, then took two of the glasses and made his way towards where Mokona was currently jumping on Syaoran's head, demanding to be picked up and cradled. "Kuro-daddy isn't mad you called him daddy!" He handed Syaoran a lemonade and then smoothly slid onto the floor, on his stomach, and stretched his arm under Wing Egg, presumably offering Kurogane the drink. "In fact, if he were mad, Daddy knows Mommy will yell at him because he made the children upset!"

Mokona gave out a peal of laughter and Syaoran watched with wide eyes as Kurogane slid out from under Wing Egg, eyes glaring daggers at the smiling man who had withdrawn his arm, lemonade still in hand. Fai moved to sit on his haunches, and rested an elbow on his knees to rest his face in his hand.

"Why" Kurogane spoke slowly, as if trying very hard to understand, "is it that if I am 'Daddy' you assume the position of 'Mommy'?"

"Well, there aren't any other adults, Sakura obviously can't be mommy, and I'm certainly pretty enough to be Mommy, right Moko-chan?"

"Fai is the prettiest Mommy!"

"See?"

"You're not a woman." Kurogane grumbled, getting up and snatching the proffered drink from Fai's outstretched hand.

Fai pouted. "Are you saying I'm not pretty?"

Kurogane didn't grace him with a verbal answer, he just gave him a withering look.

"Mokona says that Fai is more like a mommy." Mokona said sagely. "Fai is always nice and sweet and makes yummy food and puts up with Daddy when Daddy is being mean." Mokona jumped from Syaoran's head to Kurogane's. "Daddy works hard and always protects us and pretends he's being mean when he actually cares a lot. It's called discipline. Which is also what daddies do."

"Mokona is very smart." Fai cheered from a safe distance, which just happened to be behind Syaoran. Kurogane turned to look behind him, and Syaoran winced. Even though he wasn't the recipient of that glare that promised murder, he still felt its heat.

Of course, that's when Mokona decided to jump heads again and land on Fai. They then started a chant that went "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!"

Which was of course followed by a chase. Which was loud, punctuated by Kurogane's angry roars, Mokona's squeals, and Fai's carefree laughter. And ended with Sakura's surprised yelp when she decided to sleepily step outside the house (no doubt to see what all the fuss was about) and managed to somehow be unlucky when she crashed right into Mokona and Fai, the latter of whom managed to catch them all before they fell in a heap.

"Daughter! Calm your father, he's trying to kill us!" Fai laughed, shoving Sakura between him and Kurogane, who had managed to catch up when Sakura hindered them.

"Eh?" Was her surprised squeak.

"Yeah, Sakura! Defend Mommy and Baby! Daddy's being abusive!"

"Eh?!?!?!"

"Don't you drag her into this!" Kurogane yelled, easily reaching past Sakura to grab Mokona with one hand by the ears and Fai by the back of his jacket with the other. The two began begging for mercy and to be set free, all the while giggling incessantly. Sakura joined in, worriedly saying that Kurogane shouldn't be so hard on them. Syaoran stood at the sidelines, unsure of whether or not he should go and get the princess out of the way, as Kurogane was shaking his captives quite viciously, and he didn't want her to get hurt.

"Mommy should use Mokona's super secret technique to calm Daddy!"

"Eh?" Now it was Fai's turn to be confused. "Which one?"

Mokona managed to free herself when Sakura selflessly threw herself onto the arm Kurogane held Mokona with, and to not hurt her, Kurogane had stopped moving that arm and loosened his grip. She hopped onto Fai's shoulder and whispered something in his ear, eyes full of sly mischief.

Fai's smile slipped from his face for a second and he started, "Moko-chan, I'm not sure that's the best-"

"Baby and Mommy will do it at the same time! So it will have an ultra-super calming effect!"

"What are you two-" Kurogane had at that point promised the princess he would leave Mokona alone for now and was catching up to the fact they were up to no good.

"Okay Fai? On the count of three!" Mokona giggled.

"But, Moko-chan!"

"One!"

"Pork-bun, what the hell-"

"Two!"

"I'm really not sure about this!"

"You have to! Three!"

Kurogane had to at least give Fai credit, his face went through quite a series of unsure expressions before finally giving in to Mokona's super persuasive voice and leaning in to kiss him on the cheek while Mokona pecked him on the other side.

Everyone froze. Fai pulled back a bit after Mokona did, eyes wide, smile gone, sure that he was about to face a most painful death. Mokona though, was quick to run away, pulling Sakura along with her as she made her way to Syaoran and safety.

Kurogane still hadn't released Fai's collar.

Syaoran thought it interesting that neither had moved. Actually, both seemed to be in the midst of processing what had just happened. Or maybe Mokona's technique had worked incredibly well, and had calmed the ninja into a vegetative state. Fai was maybe not fearing for his life, but instead fearing for the sanity of the man who was turning an interesting shade of red next to him. Oh.

Was Kurogane-san _blushing_?!

"Daddy is blushing! Daddy is blushing! Mommy made Daddy blush!"

"Moko-chan, be fair! It was you too!" Fai seemed to snap out of it and turned to Mokona, scolding.

"Mokona knows what Mokona did." Mokona's voice was teasing, and entirely too smug. Syaoran felt like he was missing something.

Fai gave a strangely strangled laugh.

"Why is Kurogane-san Daddy? And Fai is Mommy? Mokona is Baby? Were you all playing a game?" Sakura whispered to Syaoran, endlessly confused.

"I, uh, accidentally called Kurogane-san dad. And Mokona overheard me and...well..." Syaoran gestured helplessly at the spectacle before them.

"Well, I suppose it fits. Are we the children?"

"Yes, I think."

"Kurogane-san is turning very very red. I think I'll go get him a glass of water. And maybe a fan. Oh! There's some lemonade! I'll give him that instead."

Syaoran watched in amazement as Sakura picked up a glass of lemonade from the patio table and made her way to the two men that had yet to move. She calmly opened Kurogane's fisted, but empty, hand and curled his fingers around the the cool glass. She then made her way behind Fai and gently tugged at Kurogane's hand until he let go of the collar and Fai could make his hasty retreat.

"Kurogane-san? Are you alright?" She asked as she began to softly fan him with an oil rag that had been in the back pocket of her overalls.

"Huh? Yeah I'm uh-" Kurogane still seemed a bit dazed, and _a lot_ embarrassed, "I'm fine. You!" His eyes cleared and he glared directly at Fai, who had been trying to sneak back into the house.

Fai gave a nervous laugh, "Yes, Kuro-pon?"

"What the hell was that?!"

"Mokona told me to do it!"

"Mokona just wanted Mommy and Daddy to stop fighting!" Mokona's eyes welled with big fat tears as she showed just how good of an actress she could be.

"You manipulative little-"

"Kurogane-san! You promised you wouldn't pick on Moko-chan!" Sakura pouted, sounding hurt.

"Who's picking on whom?!" It was Kurogane's turn to sound put-off.

"Mokona just wants everyone to be h-h-happy!" Hiccups made the crying sound worse. Sakura ran to her, and cradled her, making soft comforting noises to quell her tears.

Syaoran thought there was definitely something in the air in Piffle.

* * *

 

"Hey, Mage."

"Hmmm?"

Syaoran was eating breakfast, having just woken up. He had at first gone outside, but Fai ushered him back in and reheated his portion of breakfast in the microwave suspended below the cabinets in the kitchen. It was a bit before noon, and Syaoran wasn't sure he would be able to eat lunch as well as his late breakfast. But whatever Fai was cooking, it smelled good. And Syaoran stared defensively at his omelette, praying it leave some room in his stomach for lunch.

"The girl and I are going shopping for that last part we talked about yesterday. Do you need anything? I don't want to make two trips."

"I know very well that if I ask Father to shop for the groceries, he'll come back with chicken instead of pork and white bread instead of wheat. Mommy will take care of it. Thanks for offering though!" Fai grinned lazily at Kurogane as he flipped whatever was in the big wok he was holding without looking.

"You're not going to quit it with the parent schtick, are you?"

"Nope!"

Kurogane grumbled as he walked out of the door. Syaoran was still having a silent negotiation with his food. He figured that if he ate this all now, and went outside and did some hard labor for a while, he would get hungry again. Satisfied, he went back to thinking about more pressing issues. Like practicing to win the race in a few days, so they could move on from this world with a new feather for Sakura.

Or about those strange dreams he had been having recently. The ones where he could have sworn he saw another him.

"Is Syaoran-kun worried about something?" Fai wondered aloud, "His eyebrows are going to stay forever twisted like that, and then he really will take after his father!"

"I'm just...trying to remember the dream I had."

"Dreams are tricky. No matter how much you try to remember, they slip away. I find that the easiest way to remember your dreams is to not think about them. Usually, something during the day will trigger the memories, if there's anything worth remembering."

"I'll keep that in mind, thanks."

And then there was silence.

He wondered where Mokona wandered off to. Maybe she had gone shopping with the others.

"Say, I wanted to see if I could fiddle with the controls on my dragonfly, maybe get rid of that annoying way the wheel tends to stick. Would you like to come help me?"

Syaoran looked up from his empty plate to see a smiling Fai standing besides him.

"But, the food...." Syaoran was sure Fai had somehow read his mind and was leaving his cooking to help him build up an appetite.

"I've turned the heat down to simmer. It could sit for an hour before I have to come back to it. Might as well do something useful in the meantime, right?"

Syaoran nodded.

* * *

 

"Well, food's ready." Fai called out from his place by the doorway. He made his way out to Syaoran and Mokona. They had figured out the issue with the wheel. Now he was just sitting on his newly dubbed Tsubame while Syaoran tried to do the same to Mokona, with the real Mokona relaying instructions from her perch on his shoulder.

The day was beautiful. They got to talking.

Mokona was right, Fai really was a lot like a mother. He knew just what to say to make you feel at ease, and he was easy to talk to about anything. Not that Kurogane-san was intimidating, but, well... It would be just a tad daunting to ask him about, say, the little issues with travelling between worlds and altering major timelines as they went along, no matter how well meaning they were in their actions.

"So what should Syaoran-kun be worrying about right now?"

"Winning the race." Syaoran smiled, feeling more at ease.

They both turned as they heard the sound of a car coming up from behind them.

"Looks like Kuro-pyon and Sakura-chan are back!" Fai raised his hand to wave. But something was off. That was an awfully big cloud of dust behind-

"Eh?!?!"

"Oh dear. I don't think I made enough food."

* * *

 

Syaoran couldn't sleep. The preliminaries had gone well, all things considered. All four of them had made it to the finals. But Sakura still needed a lot of practice, and Syaoran was determined to make the few days they had before the next race count.

Speaking of Sakura, how had she managed to get to the gin without Fai noticing? Why, was also a good question.

There was a faint sound of knocking, above the general noises of the night here in the city. There were the occasional sirens, which all of them found incredibly annoying even though they had since learned (from Mokona) that they were emergency vehicles. There was also the general hum of the electronics scattered around the house, and since his room was next to Kurogane's, there was usually the soft chatter of whatever channel he had the tv set to.

Tonight, he had apparently been watching a cooking competition, and enjoying it immensely, if his sporadic chuckling was anything to go by. Syaoran supposed it was because he agreed with a particular judge's (or mentor?) admonishments. Undercooked meat was mentioned often.

There was that knocking again.

Followed by the creaking of bedsprings. Oh. Someone was at Kurogane-san's door.

"What do you want?" A pause. “What are you drinking?”

"Kuro-tan, I'm lonely!"

Fai-san? Why was he still awake?

"Go bother the pork bun!"

"Moko-chan is still fast asleep with Sakura! Can you blame her? She drunk a lot!"

"Are you talking about the princess or that pain in the ass? Or yourself?" The last bit was said in a more disapproving tone that the former.

"Well...all of the above?"

There was a grunt, followed by the bedsprings creaking again.

"Get the hell off, I was just laying there!"

"I can tell, it's so warm on this spot!"

"Why can't you go the fuck to sleep on your own bed like the rest of us?!"

"I told you! I got lonely! You can't say you don't miss my charming personality beside you every hour of the day!"

"If you're talking about Yama-"

Wow. These walls were thin. Syaoran wondered if either the walls were paper or he had some super hearing ability he hadn't been aware of before. He tried to tune out the conversation next door, but try as he might, the covers weren't muffling enough and it was too hot to hide under his pillow.

"You would wake me up at random fucking hours of the night, for stupid shit! No, I don't miss that!"

"Aha! But there is something you do miss!" Came Fai's triumphant voice, followed by a laugh.

"Shut up! You'll wake the kid!"

"Then let's go to my room!"

"I'm not going anywhere!”

“But you said we’ll wake up our son! And our son has no business being woken by-” and here, Fai’s voice sounded like nothing Syaoran had heard before, “how loud daddy can be.”

“Will you quit saying disgusting things!?” Oh no. His temper was getting to the point where a rampage through the house would soon follow. They’d wake up Sakura-chan for sure.

“How is that disgusting?”

“You know very well what you were just insinuating!”

Syaoran knew very well what he was just insinuating too. Syaoran would very much like to be asleep right now.

“Yes, but how is it disgusting? If it’s really disgusting, why doesn't Kuro-rin look it?”

“I told you to stop that.”

“You didn’t mind it before!”

“I didn’t know what the fuck you were saying in Yama! And I know you didn’t say crap like this, mage. Stop lying.”

“If I stop lying, you might actually start taking me seriously.”

There was a lengthy bit of silence.

A sigh. “You’re drunk. Go back to your room.”

“No no no no no!” Fai whined. “I’ll behave, okay? Don’t kick kitty out!”

“I’ve been trying to kick you out since you barged in here!”

“Have you noticed how much Sakura-chan looks at Syaoran-kun nowadays?”

Go to sleep, go to _sleep, go to sleep._

There was a groan, a very annoyed groan, and more protesting bed springs.

“What about it?”

Then there was a series of cat noises. Syaoran could practically feel the angry haze gathering on the other side of the wall, converging on the spiky haired head that was in no doubt lowered to hide a glower.

"Stop joking around!"

"We may have ourselves a case of incest, Daddy! This is serious!"

"Stop spewing crap! You know they're not actually related! Stop projecting your weird fantasies onto them!"

“The only fantasies I have are projected onto you, Kuro-pyon.”

Syaoran really _really REALLY_ couldn't stress how much he would appreciate unconsciousness right now.

“Mage.” A warning.

“Kuro-sama.” A challenge.

More silence. It was so long, Syaoran couldn’t even guess at what was going on over there.

Finally, "I am not drunk enough for this, and you are far too drunk for this."

"As far as things go, we make quite the pair."

"There is no 'we' here, mage. At least not in a paired sense. Go back to your room, let me sleep already."

"That person is cooking that fish all wrong. I don't even like fish! And even I know it's wrong!"

More silence. A frustrated grumble Syaoran couldn't make out, and then he noticed he all but had his ear pressed to the wall and he hastened to go back to his usual spot near the edge. The bed in the other room complained loudly again, and there was the heavy thudding of footsteps that the ninja couldn't be bothered to soften. He heard a door open and never shut, and you couldn't blame him for being curious, after all that. So he got out of bed and padded to his own door, opening it as quietly as he could. Peeking just beyond the frame, he managed to see Kurogane's back just before he turned the corner. He was carrying Fai cradled in his arms.

Of course, when dreams of a dark room gilded with red, and a boy behind glass who looked just like him haunted his dreams later that night, Syaoran found he had other things to worry about. The adults were just that: adults. They could handle whatever it was that had happened that night.

  



	2. Negligence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Isn't that what all love is made out of?" Fai asked without thinking. He felt the air around them thicken.
> 
> "Trust." Kurogane repeated, and seemed to mull it over. Then he said it again as if it were funny. He gave a very short, very gruff laugh, and looked Fai dead in the eye. Fai met his gaze with confusion written all over him, but smile ever present. Kurogane looked like he was going to say something, but thought better of it. 
> 
> He shook his head. "No."

Syaoran _may_ have had a good point when he implemented the alcohol ban in Outo. Alcohol was really a terrible, terrible thing. And under the guise of drunkenness, Fai made questionable decisions that he knew wouldn't be held against him in the morning. Which is what he planned to say if anyone saw him walking out of the bathroom hastily trying to do up the clasps on his jacket. Followed by a tall, dejected man whose eyes were green, which Fai had realized only almost entirely too late.

In Fai's defense, everything was more than a little fuzzy, and way too many people had black spiky hair.

But nothing had happened, really! Fai had first been clued in when the hands snaking up his back hadn't been calloused. The second strike had been when the lips at his neck had spoken and the sound was all wrong. The third had happened when his foggy brain had caught up and realized that Kurogane never got this drunk, and even if he had, he wouldn't be doing this, Fai. And you know you wouldn't let him. That was the game. He flirted with no real intention, and Kuro-sama made the safe decision for them.

He was delirious from Sakura's victory and his worry when Kurogane had shoved her out of harm's way and disappeared from the screen for a few minutes. He was shaky from the realization that he was growing far too attached. He was panicking because the ninja was, as ever, infinitely too good at reading him. He was kidding himself. He was being reckless and alcohol was no excuse.

But Fai thanked Sakura's lucky stars that she was conked out and Syaoran was drinking himself into a silly stupor elsewhere.

When they got to the living area, Fai's would-be mistake took his leave and Fai was left to look for the real Kurogane and not try too hard to keep his hands to himself. He was vaguely aware that his thought process made little sense, but the alcohol found he didn't care. He found him, or more precisely, his retreating back heading out the door towards the stillness of the night outside. Fai started after him, but paused when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tomoyo leap up, daintily set her bottle on the coffee table, and head the same way. Fai watched, a bit entranced, at the way her curls swayed with each light step she took.

Then she turned towards the patio, and she was out of his line of sight.

Fai stood at the window, squinting to manage to make out their barely lit forms by Kurogane's dragonfly. He was leaning against its side, and she sat by his feet. It appeared they were talking.

And then they weren't. They didn't do anything for a long time and Fai ignored the men and women that came up to him to solicit his attention. No to drinks, no dancing, and no heed to batted eyelashes and suggestive looks. Fai had eyes only for the two picturesque figures outside. Well, except for a glance here and there to make sure that Syaoran didn't manage to get himself into any trouble. But he was harmlessly talking to a lamp, and so Fai set his gaze towards the window.

But Fai had had a very large amount to drink, and he promptly fell asleep in a heap with his cheek mushed against the glass.  

* * *

 

When he came to, he was sprawled on the floor, something was kicking him lightly, and someone was loudly demanding someone take their pants off.

"Nnngh.. Stoooop." He whined.

"Where's the princess?" Came Kuro-chi's voice. The voice that was right.

"Locked in her tower." Fai said something just to say something in hopes of getting the kicking to stop.

"So her bedroom door is locked? Good."

"No she's on the couch over there. Stop kicking meeee."

"No. Get up." He punctuated his every word with a kick more vicious than the last. Fai whined again but obeyed, using the wall as a crutch and holding his head in his hand when the world's equilibrium appeared to be off.  A lot of people were still dancing, Tomoyo was winning what seemed to be a game of strip poker (Shougo was down to his underwear and scarf), and was staring down Primera-chan with a smile on her face. Syaoran was talking animately to a bunch of Tomoyo's bodyguards about the architecture in Piffle, and how it was like nothing he had ever seen, and do they have any old historical sites they preserved?

"Why aren't you playing with them?" Fai nodded at the card group gathered around their coffee table.

Kurogane scoffed. "Are you kidding? That Tomoyo's playing. I'd end up like him." He pointed at Shougo, who despite his situation, was still smiling from ear to ear. "Anyway, you're done for tonight. Go to your room before you get trampled. I'll watch the kid."

"Where did Mokona go?" Fai regained his balance and stood, swaying a bit, squinting to search out a white ball of fluff.

"Karaoke with those three...what're their names? Suoh, Akira...and....No-whatever. They're in the kitchen." Kuro-pyon brought the bottle in his hand to his lips and drank.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Sit here and watch the carnage." Kurogane gave a smirk. He swirled his drink as Primera threw a tantrum when she removed her belt.

"I'll stay with you!" Fai sang, draping himself over the taller man, who promptly shrugged him off.

"Fuck off and go to bed."

"But this is a party Kuro-tan! What kind of a host would I be if I went to sleep and abandoned the guests?"

"You were asleep a minute ago!"

"Yes, and Kuro-kuro was the gallant knight that saved the day! The night? The-" Fai gagged and quickly covered his mouth. Kurogane's face flashed concern before simply looking annoyed.

"You're gonna puke aren't you?"

Fai shook his head vigorously, and when that made the queasiness worse, he nodded his head slowly. Then the feeling came again and Fai made the tactical decision to bolt out the door.

He almost didn't manage to make it to the drain out by the dragonflies that they used to wash out the oil stains, their dirty hands, or the excess water from the first time Sakura had discovered the hose and a water fight ensued. But he made it, and he doubled over to heave his guts out.

"The bathroom was closer." Kurogane's voice came a second after Fai had registered his footsteps.

"The door was closed." Fai managed to pant before his stomach betrayed him again. Fai moaned and questioned his choices, over why, miserable as he was, did he insist on inflicting more misery unto himself? He yanked off his jacket, suddenly too hot, and hurled it in the general direction of the other's voice. He didn't hear it hit the ground.

"You should know your limit, idiot."

"Awww Kuro-pyon! So mean."

Kurogane huffed, he sounded amused. When Fai felt more secure in his ability to look up without losing more of what he felt were his internal organs, he saw that Kurogane wasn't even looking at him. His gaze was set towards the house, where there was polite applause from the gaggle of bodyguards as Tomoyo took a bow, without having lost so much as her hat, and Primera was pulling her shirt back on.

His gaze was soft, fond. There was hardly a crease on his brow.

"Do you love her?" Fai asked, tone serious, but smile present. "Tomoyo-chan. Your Tomoyo...hime. Back home?"

Kurogane looked down at him, obviously very confused. Granted, it was a very odd personal question. Fai would have never asked it in any other situation. But one look at Fai's face and Kurogane went from confused to incredulous.

"Love her?" He was practically staring him down. Fai hazily realized the situation was a bit ridiculous. There he was, wiping vomit off of his chin while Kurogane came to some conclusion and began to laugh.

And laugh.

You couldn't blame Fai for being as startled as he was. His brain short-circuited at the unreserved laughter coming from the man who only ever gave dry chuckles. Then he saw the bottle in Kuro-pi's hand and realized this ninja was probably as drunk as he was, and finally showing it.

"Kuro-chaaan! I'm serious!" He put his hands around his stomach when it growled threateningly. He didn't dare stand upright just yet.

Kurogane stopped laughing to give him a look that a drunk Fai wasn't equipped to decipher. "I do."

"What?" He could practically feel his face fall against his will. Fai expected a punch, a brush off, something akin to sarcasm. Not a straight answer. Then again, expecting anything but the truth from the man towering over him was a fault on Fai's part. Fai wasn't sure if he was disappointed at himself or by Kurogane's answer. Yet disappointment was not what Kurogane made Fai’s reaction out to be.

"Not the way you envision, though, mage."

"Oh." Was that relief he heard in his own voice? "So like a sister, then?"

Kuro-kun shook his head.

"A friend?"

He was thoughtful, but ultimately shook his head to that too.

"A....mother?" His guesses were getting wild.

"No! She's the princess." He said, as if that clarified everything.

"Is this another case of the Syaoran complex?!" Fai straightened up too quickly and regretted it instantly. He wobbled, but Kurogane's hand shot out to grab and steady him.

"You know exactly in what way that kid loves the princess! And I do not have that complex!" His hand let go of Fai's shoulder and came to rest at his side.

"I don't understaaand!" Fai whined.

Kurogane sighed and ran his free hand through his hair. "Am I drunk enough for this?" He wondered aloud wildly.

"You certainly are talking a lot more than usual! I vote yes."

Kurogane gave him a withering look, a why-do-I-even-bother-with-you-I-hate-you kind of look, and Fai grinned cheekily.

"She's my sovereign. I love her the way you love a sovereign. It's out of trust, gratitude, and loyalty."

"Isn't that what all love is made out of?" Fai asked without thinking. He felt the air around them thicken.

"Trust." Kurogane repeated, and seemed to mull it over. Then he said it again as if it were funny. He gave a very short, very gruff laugh, and looked Fai dead in the eye. Fai met his gaze with confusion written all over him, but smile ever present. Kurogane looked like he was going to say something, but thought better of it.

He shook his head. "No."

"Then what!?" Fai regretted drinking. It wasn't fair. Kurogane was just as drunk and still seemed to see right through him; read him perfectly. Fai and his stupid hope that didn't have any right to reside in his chest were on uneven footing. He wanted a level playing field.

"Didn't you have a king? That Ashura of yours, that you mentioned in Yama. Didn't you love him?"

Fai froze. The smile left his face, and Kurogane looked mildly....victorious? Accomplished?

"Y-yes..." he let himself trail off.

"But not like the kid?"

"No, not like Syaoran-kun."

Kurogane grunted, apparently content Fai finally understood. And he did. But the basis wasn't in the comparison.

"But not like Kuro-sama either." He whispered.

_If your Tomoyo turned into a monster you wouldn't hesitate to cut her down at her request. It probably wouldn't even come to that. You would save her before the monster dug in its claws. You're not helpless. You're not cursed._

If Kuro-sama heard him, he didn't ask him to elaborate.

"I'm going back inside now." Fai said. Kurogane didn't give him any sign of acknowledgement, so Fai just went on ahead. He heard footsteps behind him.

"Hey." They had reached the doorway. "Your jacket."

"Ah! Thank you!" Fai exclaimed and accepted the proffered jacket. While he was struggling to put it back on, Kurogane made a small surprised noise. Fai looked up at him curiously. "Yes, Kuro-chi?"

"What's....that on your neck?" He asked cautiously.

"Hmmm?" Well he couldn't see it, so he brought his hand to his neck to feel. Everything was normal, except for one spot that was slightly tender. Oh.

That man had left a mark.

He felt a cloud of anger converge on the ninja who had probably made the wrong assumption.

"It was nothing! He didn't mean anything to m... By it. I mean. We both!...." he stopped when he saw Kurogane visibly calming.

"It wasn't because you were alone?" His eyes lingered at the mark. Fai, feeling self conscious, made sure his collar obscured it.

"No. It wasn't."

Kuro-rin nodded. Then left him.

"Fai-san!" Primera launched herself at him from behind, followed by a petulant Mokona that was feeling very betrayed.

"Fai said Fai would sing with Mokona after giving out the snacks but when Mokona finished beating Suoh at karaoke Fai was nowhere to be seen!"

“I’m here now! Let’s go! Bring Syaoran-kun!”

“And Kurogane!” Mokona supplied gleefully.

Fai gave a pause. Then he smiled. “Sure. If you can convince him.”

* * *

 

They didn’t convince him. He had gone and slept somewhere while Fai picked up another bottle. Then another.

Which is another questionable decision that he knew wouldn't be held against him in the morning, and he also knew he would regret.

Which he did. Very much.

But Sakura was handing him some sort of refreshment and he was feeling more alive by the second. So he forced himself to stand and then forced himself to move and then tried to convince himself that the sun was not his enemy, he usually liked the sun. Then he took the serving platter from her hands and distributed the drinks himself. It's what gracious hosts do. They smile and offer words of comfort to their green-faced party-goer guests.

Sakura disappeared somewhere with Tomoyo-chan not too much later.

At least he wasn't on Syaoran's level. The poor boy was begging Mokona to take her energetic self elsewhere, preferably far away from the top of his head.

Kurogane, meanwhile, was looking very smug about being the only one without as much as a light headache. Fai remembered his uninhibited laughter the night before and cursed his inability to hold his liquor well. He would have preferred to commit that moment to memory with a sober mind. Like the memory of Sakura discovering her luck in Jade. Or like Syaoran in that ridiculous wig, performing like he had been born for it. Or each and every one of Mokona’s techniques. Or of his boy and Kurogane sparring in Outo and holding back satisfied grins.

His boy.

 

_No. You are not allowed to grow attached._

 

_They are, none of them, yours._

 

Why did he insist on inflicting more misery unto himself?

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's done with goddamn school


End file.
